Publications

This paper looks at the well-being of children in transition economies in the light of greater economic integration. The different stages of integration of the transition economies into the world economy are marked by substantial variations in trade and capital flows. International labour mobility remains limited, and unemployment has been high since the beginning of transition. Because employment is the main determinant of household income, this has had a negative effect on the well-being of children. At the national level, a high degree of variation in regional unemployment rates has emerged which is symptomatic of the lack of integration of labour markets. High regional unemployment rates are further associated with increases in non-participation, while adjustments via wages and migration have been largely absent, or insufficient. Indicators of child well-being – such as infant mortality rates – are positively correlated with unemployment rates, suggesting that public service provision is, in general, not sufficient to offset the negative effect of unemployment on child well-being. A closer look at unemployment benefit schemes reveals not only large differences between countries but also scope for broader coverage and better targeting of programmes in order to reduce the risk of families falling into poverty when parents become unemployed.

Процесс международной интеграции ярче высветил многие проблемы, и не в последнюю очередь рост масштабов бедности и неравенства между странами и внутри стран. Это относится как к странам Центральной и Восточной Европы и Содружества Независимых Государств, так и к другим регионам мира. После краха коммунистических режимов вместо 8 стран, существовавших в 1989 году, к середине 1990-х годов образовалось 27. Рыночные реформы не только принесли ногочисленные выгоды и преимущества, но и породили нестабильность. Сегодня жизнь детей в этом регионе совсем не такая, как у их родителей, – шире перспективы, больше свободы и возможностей выбора, но при этом и больше бедности, неравенства и риска.

L’Innocenti Social Monitor 2004 prende in esame la povertà dei bambini in un mondo sempre più integrato, affrontando il problema da quattro diversi punti di vista: 'Crescita economica e povertà dei bambini' fa un esame della situazione dei bambini che subiscono la povertà legata al reddito familiare e registra che dalla fine degli anni novanta una costante crescita economica ha ridotto la proporzione di persone che vivono in famiglie con reddito inferiore al minimo nazionale di sussistenza. Questo significa che una quota crescente della popolazione di bambini in tutta la regione corre il rischio di crescere nella povertà. 'Integrazione economica, mercato del lavoro e bambini' si occupa del processo d’integrazione nell’economia globale, misurata sulla base del commercio e del volume di investimenti esteri diretti. L’integrazione economica è aumentata in tutta la regione, ma è particolarmente concentrata nei paesi dell’Europa centrale e del Baltico che sono diventati membri dell’UE. L’analisi mostra perciò che i convenzionali meccanismi di adeguamento del mercato hanno impoverito i bambini nelle aree svantaggiate di molti paesi. 'Tendenze dei movimenti migratori e implicazioni per le politiche pubbliche' rileva che dagli anni ottanta in poi le migrazioni sono notevolmente aumentate in tutta la regione. Tra le ragioni di ciò vi sono la frammentazione delle nazioni, con il passaggio da 8 a 27 paesi all’inizio degli anni novanta, il che ha spinto molti ad emigrare, in molti casi per fuggire da conflitti o persecuzioni. L’articolo sottolinea l’esigenza che i governi dei paesi sia di origine sia di destinazione gestiscano meglio il fenomeno e rafforzino i canali legali di emigrazione nella regione. 'I giovani e le droghe: aumentano i rischi per la salute' indaga le conseguenze sulla salute dell’uso del tabacco, dell’alcol e degli stupefacenti illegali sui giovani, in particolare il legame tra consumo di stupefacenti e decessi di giovani nella regione.

Innocenti Social Monitor 2004 reviews recent socio-economic trends in the 27 countries of Central and Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States. It examines child poverty in an integrating world from four different perspectives: Economic Growth and Child Poverty looks at children in poverty related to family income and indicates that since the late 1990s steady economic growth has reduced the proportion of people living in households with incomes below national subsistence minima. Despite years of good intentions and more recent economic growth, large numbers of children in the region remain trapped in poverty. Economic Integration, Labour Markets and Children finds that integration into the global economy, as measured by trade and volumes of foreign direct investment, has grown across the region, but is particularly concentrated in the new EU member countries. It shows that conventional market adjustment mechanisms have impoverished children in disadvantaged areas of many countries. Migration Trends and Policy Implications finds that migration has grown greatly in the region since the 1980s; reasons for this upsurge include the fragmentation of nations from eight countries into 27 at the start of the 1990s, causing many people to migrate. The article stresses the need for governments in both originating and receiving countries to better manage migration and increase avenues for legal migration across the region. Young People and Drugs: Increasing Health Risks, investigates the health consequences of the use of tobacco, alcohol and illegal drugs by children and young people, particularly the links between drug use and young people’s deaths across the region. Additionally, the Statistical Annex covers a broad range of indicators for the years 1989 to 2002-2003,including population trends, births and fertility, mortality, family formation, health, education, child protection, crime, income, as well as a comprehensive statistical profile of each country in the region.